Quilt Math

You may recall that I was on a quilt frenzy at the beginning of this year.  I found this pattern that I really liked, made one in a lap size and then made one that ended up being twin size.  They are off being quilted now, I think I will get them back next week and just have the binding left to do.

I decided that I wanted to use the pattern to make one for myself. I bought a variety of batik prints in a rainbow of colors.  But after I made the twin size I got to thinking about how many pieces it would take to make the queen size.

The pieces from the original pattern range from 1" x 3.5" as the smallest to 3.5" x 5" as the largest. a finished 'block' set measures 7" x 8.5" and then each one is joined with a 1" strip between. Each block consists of 9 pieces.

So to make a queen size I think I would need about 190 blocks, which is over 1700 pieces, not including all the sashing pieces to join them.  Sounds like a lot doesn't it?

So I decided to do some quilt math and see if I could get it worked out so the pieces were larger (which would mean less of them).  Quilt math isn't always just a matter of multiplying.  I calculated if the blocks were 1.5 times and also 2 times larger.  2 times was pretty large, so I decided to try it with the 1.5 times.  My math was a little off in a couple of places, and to top it off, I cut all the pieces 1/4" wider than I meant to (I can't read my own writing, I guess).  Anyway, since it was an experiment, I adjusted where needed and here's the resulting quilt on the design wall (still have to do sashing and join them all).

 I'm still looking at the placement of the blocks to see if I need to move any around - I probably will.

With the size adjustments I made, each block ends up being about 11" x 13" and I did 1.5" sashing instead of 1".  So to make a queen size, I will need about 80 finished blocks - instead of 190 - which sounds a little more manageable.

I'm not sure I will decide for sure until I get this one put all the way together and toss it on a bed to see.

This one will end up close to 50" x 60" I think, depending on what I do for a border, if anything.  I was thinking about some geese - been a while since I've done any....

Stay tuned for the next quilt installment, although it may be a while!

Happy Sewing!
Susan